10 Things You Didn't Know About Jaws

4. The Great White Turd

The shark, nicknamed "Bruce", was largely a mechanical failure. You probably already knew that, too. But how about the fact that the first time it was placed in salt water it sank to the bottom and had to be retrieved by divers? "Bruce" was so often broken that Spielberg often referred to it as "the great white turd" or "flaws". There was a silver lining to all this, though. Spielberg, by his own admission, had to turn Jaws into a Hitchcock film with a heaping of suspense to offset the lack of shark footage that resulted from the oft-broken Bruce. I think we can all agree the movie was better off with the changes.

5. Peter Benchley Is In Jaws

Peter Benchley (author of Jaws), Michael McKean (This is Spinal Tap, Coneheads, Laverne and Shirley), and Howard Hesseman (WKRP in Cincinatti) are all in the movie. Peter Benchley played a reporter covering the reopening of Amity's beaches on the 4th of July. McKean and Hesseman provided background voices.
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Tim is a varied character. He's lived on three continents. He hates ice cream. He has been a highly-paid computer programmer. He invents collectible card games. He is a coffee shop owner. He has had fantasy stories published in magazines. Eventually he wishes to retire from life and become a professional 10-pin bowler who writes articles while living in his RV and traveling from bowling tournament to bowling tournament with his faithful wife in tow. And of course, Tim is a major horror and science fiction fan.